Improvement in keyed musical instruments



UNITED STATES PATENT QFFICE.

EIWIMONS HAMLIN, OF WINOI-IESTER, ASSIGNOR TO MASON St IIAMLIN ORGAN COMPANY, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN KEYED MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 116,834, dated July ll, 1871.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that l, EMMoNs HAMLIN, of Winchester, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Keyed Musical Instruments; and I do hereby declare that the following, taken in connection with the drawing which accompanies and forms part of this specification, is a description of my invention, suiiicient to enable those skilled in the art to practice it.

United States Letters Patent No. 107 ,342, dated September 13, 1870, were granted to IV. Gr. Day for an improvement in transposing mechanism for organs, Ste., said Days invention consisting in constructing and arranging the key-board oi' an organ or other similarI instrument by means of certain mechanical contrivances, so that a player may play any music at a higher or lower pitch upon the same keys by lateral movement of the key-board.

My invention relates to an improvement upon such mechanism, or to the details of construction or organization for rendering such invention mor practical and less objectionable.

In my invention I hinge the key-board or keyboard frame, at its rear side, upon a rod supported upon suitable pillars, and so that said frame may be freely slid endwise upon said rod, and toward the front ofthe keyboard I support the frame upon a bed-piece or rail, a suitable stop pin or stop-pins projecting` from the bottom of the frame, entering holes in the rail and steadying the key-board and holding the frame in position, while at the front of the frame are hinged lifters, the depending shanks of which extend down through the case at the rear of the front board, and so that knobs or handles upon their ends are accessible through the opening at the front of the instrument and do not project in front of the case. By raising the lifters the front of the key-board is elevated so as to free the stoppins from their holes, and when thus free the keyboard frame -may be freely slid in a lateral direction in such manner as to bring the keys into connection with reeds, or strings, or pipes more or less contiguous to those in connection with which they were before moving, according to the number of holes provided for entrance of the stop-pin. It is in this detail of construction that my invention primarily consists, or in a laterallysliding key-board or key-board frame hinged and sliding at its rear upon a rod, supported by suitable posts on top of the wind-chest, and having at its front depending lifters, by raisii'xg which a stop-pin, projecting down from the keyboard frame, is lifted from any one of a series of locking-holes, so that the keys of the keyboard may, by lateral movement of the litters, be transposed. The drawing' represents a key-board mounted and arranged in accordance with my invention. A shows a front elevation, B a plan, and C an end elevation of the key-board and adjacent parts.

a denotes the key-board, arranged upon and with respect to a key-board frame, b, in the usual manner. This frame has projecting from its rear side tail-pieces c, through which passes the horizontal hin ge-rod d, passing through and supported by posts c extending up from the frame j' ot' the wind-chest, the key-board turning up freely and sliding freely on this rod. g denotes the rail or bed-piece, upon which the key-board rests and is supported toward its front. A pin, h, extends down from the under side ofthe key-board frame into either one of a series of holes, ar, in the rail g, according to the position of the key-board, and at the iront of the key-board are hinged the lifters fi, which pass down through slots or openings k at the rear of the front board l', a suitable handle or knob, m bein fixed to the bottom of each lifter. By reaching under the board l the player can grasp the handles m and lift the key-board on the rod d, and as soon as the pin 7L rises out of the hole .fr under it he can slide the key-board and keys in either direction, the holes a' being so arranged that, whenever the key-board is let down and the stoppin enters either of the holes, the keys are in correct position relatively to the reeds and the key-board is locked from lateral movement. To indicate the position of the keyboard a ringer, n, may be attached to and project from the front of the key-board and extend through the name-board o, said board beingl provided with a slot, p, and a series of indicatingnotches, q, the notches and finger having such relation te the stop-piu and its holes that when the pin drops into any hole the finger drops into a notch. The position of this finger in any notch indicates the position of the keys, and the notches may be provided with suitable letters, characters, or numbers, to designate the position ofthe keys when the tin ger is in any particular notch. The arrangement ofthe key-board and its locking and laterallynloying mechanism is not only convenient and reliable7 but it oi'ers no obstruction to the packing` of the instrument7 and (loes not require unsightly projections from the sides of the case. The key-board is Very easily manipulated as regards its chan ge of position or the transposition of its keys7 and the change is made by the same manipulations or as apart or continu ation of the same manipulation that raises and unlocks the key-board.

In packing` or moving the instrument buttons or cliocks may be slid in between the knobs and the bottom of the Wind-chest or the front board to lock the key-board down and prevent its rise and accidental lateral movement.

I claim- 1. ln combination with the key-board, tipping and sliding` on the rod d, the litters fi depending from the iront of the keyboard through slots or openings at the rear or' the front board l, substantially as shown and described.

2. In combination with the lifting' and sliding, key-board7 the stop-pin li and the stop-holes in, the construction bein g substantially as described.

Executed February 3, 1871.

' EMMONS HAMLIN.

Titnesses W. O. Tnownnincn, (l. E. HOLMAN. 

